Read the text about fossil fuels and answer the questions below:
We have to stop using fossil fuels!
Since the beginning of the industrial revolution, we have been using more and more fossil fuels and this is messing up our environment! But despite claims that this is getting better, it’s actually getting worse and worse. We used to use only coal, but now we are using gas and petroleum and every year the amount of greenhouse gasses in the atmosphere goes up and up. And in developing countries, air pollution is increasing rapidly with the number of particles per million reaching as high as 700 parts-per-million and averaging over 300. Even if we weren’t concerned about the long-term effects of global warming, we should be very, very worried about the effects of air pollution on our health. This is clearly ridiculous and is killing thousands of people! According to scientists, air pollution killed over 5.5 million people in 2013 alone! Our politicians are responding to this crisis by sitting on their hands and we shouldn’t take this lying down.
So what can you do?
- Boycott companies known to have a bad environmental record.
- Reduce your consumption of energy, for example by turning off lights and taking shorter showers.
- Buy an electric car or e-bike.
- When possible, cycle, walk or take public transport instead of driving.
- Write a letter to your local politician, telling them how worried you are.
- Vote for parties which support reducing fossil fuel use.
- Join and participate in an organization which promotes environmental protection.